Dow AgroSciences (NZ) Limited - New Health Studies

The DAS plant in Paritutu Road New Plymouth has manufactured agricultural chemicals and other products since the 1960's. During the late 1980's the plant participated in an international study of workers in ten countries who were potentially exposed to phenoxy herbicides and their contaminants.

This study was published in 1991 and covered workers at New Plymouth from 1969-1984. The international cohort was updated and reported in 1997, and data on the New Zealand workers was further updated in 2004.

However, due to the design and objectives of this study, not all New Plymouth employees were included. Accordingly Dow commissioned new research to include all past and present New Plymouth employees. The study, led by an independent health researcher at the University of Otago, was initiated in October 2004 and became public in April 2008.

This new research followed 1,599 employees who worked at the site between 1969, the first date of complete work records, and 1988, when manufacture of 2,4,5-T ceased.  It included taking samples of blood for dioxin analysis from 346 current and former employees who still live in Taranaki.

The overall conclusion of the research is that, among the workers involved in the study, life expectancy is the same as the rest of the NZ population, deaths from all causes and all cancers is within the normal range expected in NZ, and there is no evidence of increased cancer or other disease related to dioxin exposure.

As expected, serum dioxin levels among some exposed workers were elevated, but well below levels of health concern.  Among people in unexposed job, such as those worked in offices on the site, serum doxin levels were consistent with background levels for the comparable age groups in the NZ population.

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